1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, to remote communication apparatus for vehicles.
2. Description of the Art
It is known to provide communication devices for remotely communicating with the occupant of a vehicle. Such devices include cellular and wireless telephones as well as pagers to provide two-way communication between a central telephone service provider and each remote telephone or pager disposed within a vehicle.
At the same time, it is also known to provide remote communication with certain operable circuits or functional elements of a vehicle. For example, it is known to use a remote transmitter to transmit signals to a receiver in the vehicle for starting and/or stopping a vehicle engine. Remote communications have also been employed to control other vehicle functions, such as remote locking and unlocking of vehicle doors, trunk release, as well as flashing of the vehicle lights.
Vehicle security systems have also been devised which automatically disable an engine to prevent the engine from being started upon the detection of an intrusion event. Remote control systems have also been provided to disable or stop an operating engine in the event of a vehicle hijacking.